Trump officials claim Iran is ‘weaponising global trade’ May 5, 2026 The United States’ most senior military officer has warned that Iran’s sustained assault on commercial shipping threatens to destabilise the world economy, accusing the country’s leadership of deliberately weaponising the global supply chain. General Dan Caine, the former venture capitalist currently serving as chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, made a stark intervention [...]
Rachel Reeves battled Scott Bessent over Iran war May 5, 2026 Chancellor Rachel Reeves sparred with Donald Trump’s Treasury secretary Scott Bessent over the US’s attacks on Iran, it has been reported. During her stay in Washington DC for meetings at the International Monetary Fund last month, Reeves hit out at the Trump official for “how he had spoken to her.” The two sparred over the [...]
Donald Tusk says Nato is falling apart May 2, 2026 Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk has said Nato is suffering from an “ongoing disintegration” amid pressures on governments to increase defence spending. In a post on X, the former EU council president indicated a war of words between President Trump and Chancellor Merz of Germany, which led to the US taking 5,000 soldiers out of [...]
Petrol retailers vindicated after Reeves ‘profiteering’ claims May 1, 2026 Petrol retailers have been vindicated of “price gouging”, pouring cold water on the government’s accusations of profiteering from the war in Iran. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that higher fuel prices in the UK were caused by the rising cost of oil, rather than by retailers expanding their margins to profit from the [...]
Natwest, HSBC, Lloyds face rules change in regulatory shake-up April 27, 2026 A number of Britain’s top lenders will on Tuesday face a rules overhaul relating to regulations around de-banking customers. HSBC, Natwest and Lloyds are among the lenders that will have to comply with the new changes that are expected to afford customers improved protections when accounts are closed. New rules – which will come into [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks dip as oil prices surge to three-week high April 27, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the Morning Wire liveblog. There’s set to be little relief in markets this morning as investors return from the weekend to oil hitting a three-week high. The price of Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – rose two per cent to over $107 on Monday morning. [...]
‘There’s a lot of risk out there’ – Bank of England warns of market ‘adjustment’ April 24, 2026 A top Bank of England official has warned that global markets could fall even further with current share prices not reflecting the economic risks at play. Sarah Breeden, the Bank’s deputy governor for financial stability, said: “There’s a lot of risk out there and yet asset prices are at all-time highs. “We expect there will [...]
Trump threatens UK tariffs over digital tax row April 24, 2026 Donald Trump has warned he could slap fresh tariffs on the UK if it refuses to scrap its digital services tax, escalating tensions between London and Washington. Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump said the US could “very easily” respond to the levy by targeting British exports. “We’ve been looking at it and we can [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks jitter as inflation surges; Trump extends ceasefire April 22, 2026 Good morning and welcome back to the Morning Wire liveblog. Inflation has surged this morning follow the outbreak of war in Iran. Fresh figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has shown the consumer price index rose by 3.3 per cent in the 12 months to March 2026. That’s up from three per cent [...]
‘No more Mr Nice Guy’: Oil prices spike as Trump renews Iran power plant threats April 20, 2026 The price of oil has been driven higher by the latest round of escalations in the Middle East renewing fears of a drastic global energy shock. Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – jumped over six per cent on Monday morning to over $96. It follows a weekend of tensions where shipping [...]